Threads, Carpets, and PM Modi’s 75th

Happy Birthday Pradhan Mantri:

I watched several videos — four or five, maybe more — of public figures sending their wishes. Among them: Donald Trump, Narendra Modi, Benjamin Netanyahu, Shah Rukh Khan, Aamir Khan, Mohammed Siraj, and Mukesh Ambani.

Mukesh Ambani, of course, remains closely aligned with the establishment, and Aamir Khan seemed to lean heavily into his Hindu heritage — adorned with Rakhis on his wrist, even a Bindi. He’s presenting himself now in a distinctly Hindu cultural idiom, though he comes from a very prominent Indian Muslim family.

By contrast, Shah Rukh Khan stood out. His message was subtly sardonic — he remarked that the recipient was “outrunning young people like me.” It was light, but just subversive enough to feel intentional. Interestingly, both Shah Rukh and Aamir spoke in shuddh Hindi, which added a certain performative weight to their gestures.

Hindu Art

I’ve been fairly busy the past few days, mostly focused on BRAHM Collections; writing about carpets, curating Trimurti sculptures, and exploring Ardhanarishvara iconography. It’s been a deep dive into the civilizational grammar of India and by extension, the porous boundary between sacred art and civil religion.

In the background, I’ve also been chipping away at longer-form reflections; trying to crack the formula for my newsletter (believe it or not the readership is neck to neck with BP but different demographics). It’s all a bit scattered, but the writing has become its own brown paper trail.

On the Commentariat (and Why I’m Stepping Back)

I still follow the commentariat but I’m slowly easing off. There’s a rhythm to it, sure, but too often it turns into exhaustion. I’ve removed all of Honey Singh’s abusive posts. Abuse is now a hard red line for me, but beyond that, I’m stepping back from constant moderation or sparring.

And to be honest, I no longer want to fall into the Kabir trap; a trap where technicality becomes provocation and clarity becomes combat. Kabir can be vexatious, yes, but I know better than to keep taking the bait. That’s growth, I suppose.

Gaza, 9/11, and the Consequences of Overkill

The situation in Gaza has become morally undeniable. It’s genocide, plain and painful.

It reminds me of the post-9/11 moment: the justified strike against Osama bin Laden turned into a decade-long quagmire across Iraq and Afghanistan, eroding American credibility. The hegemony of the U.S. wasn’t defeated by China; it was hollowed from within.

Now we live in a world where China rises cautiously, avoiding those mistakes; while the U.S, and its proxy, seem unable to resist overreaction. The new multipolar world isn’t shaped by strength alone, but by restraint and timing.

Pakistan: A Country Built for Multipolarity

Pakistan, curiously, may thrive more in a multipolar world than in a unipolar one (as it did in the ’80s and Musharraf era with the War on Terror). In a U.S.-dominated order, it’s too easy to sideline. But when power becomes distributed, China, Turkey, GCC, Russia, Pakistan becomes useful again. Its ambiguity becomes an asset.

That said, the average Pakistani is in an unenviable position. I’ve read stories about the makeshift Sialkot football team used to enter Japan; desperate, symbolic of deeper rot. Unrestrained population growth, dwindling legitimacy, decaying institutions. Hence my annoyance with Kabir, is that he ignores the plight of ordinary Pakistan to wage ideological warfare across the border.

Yet Pakistan is adaptive. It fits into emerging gray zones of global politics. It is not North Korea, but it’s not India either. It straddles desperation and relevance.

India, Muslims, and the Fallacy of Equivalence

There’s a false equivalence being drawn between Indian Muslims and Pakistanis. That comparison is deeply flawed and, frankly, offensive. Whatever India’s problems, Muslims in India remain within a pluralistic political framework. They face challenges, but they are not boxed in by a state built to serve only them.

Conversely, Pakistan is built around Islam, which means that Muslims can rise freely but non-Muslims face systemic ceilings. It’s not just a matter of formal exclusion; it’s about cultural legitimacy. In India, everyone must negotiate pluralism. In Pakistan, only non-Muslims do.

I’d also add: when the state is essentially owned by a particular population, upward mobility becomes asymmetrical. Yes, Muslims and Pakistanis in the West are generally better off than back home but even then, it’s worth asking whether class and cultural barriers keep certain communities locked in place across generations. That, too, is an important thread to follow.

Persian Echoes and Indo-Persian Realities

A Persian teacher once told me that Iranians today can only study in failed countries: Afghanistan and Pakistan. That stuck with me not because I agreed, but because it framed a painful truth. The Persian zone is in retreat, caught between two collapses: Persian nostalgia and Islamic populism.

Pakistan, in some sense, is an Indo-Persian hybrid with neither the stability of Iran nor the brutal clarity of Afghanistan. It is uniquely in-between.

And maybe that’s the story: the in-between country that still matters. Useful, liminal, tragic and oddly poised for relevance again, now that the West is tired and China is careful.

Final Thought

Kabir, like Pakistan, provokes. But perhaps the wiser path is to observe rather than obsess. I’ll keep writing about carpets. They have more continuity than borders.